Al-qaeda operative detained in Yemen
The US has been trying to extradite this goon, so he can stand trial, for years now. But, will he stay “detained” long? Do not hold your breath, and don’t even think about that extradition.
Jaber Elbaneh, the al-Qaeda operative who had roamed free in Yemen despite a $5 million reward offered by the U.S. government for his capture, was jailed Sunday by a Yemeni judge.
According to Yemen’s official news agency, a judge ordered Elbaneh’s arrest after prosecutors filed a request to lock him up. Elbaneh is one of three dozen Yemeni defendants being tried on charges of conspiring to blow up oil installations in 2006. Until Sunday, prosecutors had allowed Elbaneh to remain free while the trial proceeded in Sanaa, the capital, in spite of recent demands from FBI Director Robert S. Mueller III and other U.S. officials that he be imprisoned. U.S. officials welcomed the news. “We have been waiting for the arrest of this wanted terrorist for a long time,” said an official at the U.S. Embassy in Sanaa, speaking on the condition of anonymity. “Elbaneh’s arrest sends the right message that terrorists will be held accountable for their crimes.”
It is unclear, however, how long Elbaneh, 41, a U.S.-Yemeni citizen, will remain behind bars. Senior Yemeni officials have expressed doubts about whether Elbaneh is guilty and have said they will not extradite him to the United States, citing a constitutional ban on deporting Yemeni citizens to other countries.